Case Number 05418

ANGEL: THE COMPLETE THIRD SEASON

The Charge

Cordelia: Angel, I sort of need to talk to you in person. Angel: Is it
something...bad? Cordelia: No. No. It's something good...I think. Well, it
sort of depends on how you feel. Angel: About what? Cordelia: Well,
about me.

Opening Statement

Angel: The Complete Third Season on DVD is a steal for any fan,
because you get a great set of shows and some nice features not necessarily
found in the previous sets. Every time Fox releases a Buffy or
Angel box they up the ante on their past efforts. I would venture to
guess each successive release has more time spent on it, and you can tell they
want to suck you into buying at least one more season. Luckily for the
Angel team, Season Three ends with such a heartbreaking cliffhanger that
it guarantees you'll be back for Season Four. And that brings us to the rather
simple theme of the third season of "the vampire with a soul"
show...heartbreak. Scads of it! In every way, shape, and form the characters
flirt with happiness, only to have their hearts ripped out and thrown on the
floor at every turn. I compared Season Two to Hamlet; with Season Three I
would have to say that Greek tragedy or opera at its headiest has taken over,
because nobody seems to escape their inevitable heartbreak and loss. During this
period, both Buffy and Angel were steeped in darkness, but
Angel's writers and actors swam and prospered in the black and delivered
some of its best moments. Ironically, it's the vampire who thrived and blossomed
in the dark, and not the denizens of Sunnydale.

Facts of the Case

We all know the drill by now. Six discs, 22 episodes, and features scattered
throughout.

Special Features * Darla...Deliver Us From Evil (13 minutes) * Season Three Overview (33 minutes) * Page to Screen (14 minutes) * Outtakes * Screen Tests for Amy Acker and Vincent Kartheiser *
Still Gallery (29 photos) * Deleted scenes from both "Birthday"
and "Waiting in the Wings" with commentary

The Evidence

Season Three continued the trend of moving Angel away from a
"monster of the week" format into a "supernatural soap
opera" of mythic proportions. I sense some Dark Shadows influences
in there (the brooding vampire who longs to have human emotions, the love
triangles, and the Gothic settings), but the creative team one-ups its
predecessor with dazzling effects and grand storytelling that owes little to the
Gothic novels endlessly recycled by Dark Shadows. Angel admirably
tread its own path, and even tore itself out from the shadow of its sister show
Buffy. You could make a case that every single player deserved some
accolade or award for bravely entering new territory, and for redefining how
fantasy shows could incorporate the best features of other genres into a fresh
new show.

In simple terms, the plot of Season Three addressed the return of Darla
(Julie Benz), who had a surprise in tow. Simultaneously, a figure from both
Angel's (David Boreanaz) and Darla's past, Captain Daniel Holtz (Keith
Szarabajka, veteran actor and voice over artist), transcends time to exact
vengeance on the couple. The entire season kicks into high gear right around
episode seven and never lets go of this main plot, except for minor interludes.
The entire "Fang Gang" face their own trials and tribulations as they
each find and lose love and family again and again. Ultimately all of them will
have to follow their own solitary paths, and there is little hope of a
reconciliation by the final curtain. There is no way I can remain spoiler-free
from this point on, so here are the requisite spoiler tags for anyone who has
not seen this batch of episodes. The Closing Statement section of this review
will find you safely back in spoiler-free territory.

(BEGIN SPOILERS)

The biggest challenge this season was the introduction of a new character,
Angel and Darla's son Connor (first played by the Tupen triplets, then by
Vincent Kartheiser as a teenager). It got the most mileage on the message
boards, and seemed to throw fans of Angel for a loop -- much like
Buffy did by introducing Dawn. His birth in the alley was a magnificent
sequence that showed off the season's best camera work. Yeah, he was jarring;
but he was also necessary to the whole "family" motif that arose from
Holtz's return. Connor was the impetus to begin the exploration of family issues
with respect to all the characters in Angel. A rather literal
manifestation of a theme; but then Whedon and company have seldom been subtle
with their metaphors. (See their The Shining homage in the "misogyny
is BAD" episode "Billy" for further evidence of the unsubtle
metaphor.) Kartheiser does a wicked take on a primitive Peter Pan unleashed in
Los Angeles, and his angst and verve are justified by the arc of his
character.

Holtz remains one of the most brilliant villains on this or any show.
Angel always had the Wolfram and Hart firm for bad guys, but here was a
solitary man who was not entirely evil (just really damaged), and who mirrored
Angel's quest for redemption in his own quest for damnation. Too bad this is the
only season where he exists, because he was a wonderful foil. And his cohort
Justine (Laurel Holloman, The L Word)? A totally wounded and brilliant
performance of a disturbing character that haunts me still. The villains rocked
in Season Three harder than they ever did or would again. I only wish this level
had been played out in the final season of both Angel and Buffy.
Where this season succeeds is in its realization that evil in and of itself is
not scary, it's the demons of our humanity that cause us to do evil which really
scare and keep us awake. Holtz and Justine terrified me more than The First Evil
(found in Buffy's swan-song season,) because we knew what was driving the
badness; they were in pain and nothing would stop them.

The whole cast was unstoppable. Wesley shined as he flirted with the dark
side. Denisof lets his acting chops show, and it seems criminal that he was
never nominated for an Emmy. Whether he was arguing prophecy with a giant
hamburger or secretly visiting Holtz, he played everything real to the tenth
degree. Just watch his scenes in the hospital, and you can literally feel every
moment of pain with just one look. He is the Judas of the show in Season Three,
and it's a stunning mind-bending turn. And I know I will be flamed for this, but
he ends up with the hottest woman! Yes, you can have your Fred or Cordelia, but
I like my women dark and lovely. Lilah (Stephanie Romanov) rocks my world in all
the right and wrong ways. I get butterflies every time Lilah comes on screen.
She's deliciously bad, but also turns in a nuanced performance that never lets
you pinpoint where the real human and evil-to-the-core lawyer intersect. Lorne
(Andy Hallett) also comes into his own in Season Three. He becomes an integral
part of the show, and you knew he'd never stay in Vegas too long. Add in another
great turn by Julie Benz, and you realize that the whole cast was strong as
hell. This is an ensemble that will never be matched.

Yet the center remains Angel and Cordelia. David Boreanaz and Charisma
Carpenter anchor the show with style and grace. Cordelia has to face her biggest
trial ever when a past love returns to her, and she is given a choice to live a
different life than the one she's currently living. Cordelia's transformation
comes full circle here, and Season Three will make you mourn what is to come for
her in the next batch of episodes (damn you Season Four!). She even gets a
chance to skewer what could have been Charisma's real fate -- a sitcom star --
in the brilliantly done "Birthday" episode. Boreanaz had to play dad
to everyone, not only his new son, and he let loose with the smooth and easy
humor and intensity so vital to a Whedon show. His intense climactic scenes with
Denisof elevate both actors to new highs. If Boreanaz never does another series
or movie, he certainly made a successful career out of what began as a guest
role on a teen horror show. No small feat to become Angel.

The Rebuttal Witnesses

The love thing became a bit much, but it was handled well. I bought the
Wesley (Alexis Denisof), Gunn (J. August Richards), and Fred (Amy Acker)
triangle. It set off Wesley nicely once Fred and Gunn got together, and gave him
the beginnings of his dark side. More problematic was the revelation that Angel
and Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter) were "in love." There had been no
real setup for this in the lead-in to the revelation, and it seemed more of a
way to artificially propel the plot than an organic, easy-to-swallow development
of the characters. Obviously Joss Whedon was behind all of this, since it is his
brilliant contribution to the season "Waiting in the Wings" that
brought all of this to a head.

Spoilers End

Closing Statement

Season Three of Angel continued the show's grand traditions and set
the stage for the final two seasons. It is the centerpiece to a show that was
canceled too quickly out of a network's concern for fiscal issues. Angel
was one of those rare shows that made you feel smart for discovering it, and
cheated when it was gone.

The set itself continues the technical excellence Fox has regularly shown
with these releases. Black levels are pitch-perfect, and, aside from some edge
enhancement, the transfers are startling and superior to digital broadcasts. The
audio is a surround stereo that stays true to the original airings, and does its
job nicely. The features are rich and robust, with the commentaries being the
centerpiece. Joss Whedon's contribution is entertaining and insightful, and the
others (with Tim Minear and the writers of the show) are giddy fun.

The Verdict

No crimes to be found here. And if there are...I have a hot evil lawyer to
represent me! Lilah, I may need your card. I swear it's for business.